Sun 1: Apparently the Stepney Mini Store on Stepney Way sells 'Diary products', and I am sorely tempted to go inside and ask for a 2022 Page-a-day.
Mon 2: Shopping update: My local big Tesco appears to have stopped selling Becks (other than the pointless alcohol-free version). A few weeks ago I put it down to them running out during the Euros, but no, it appears they've completely stopped stocking it. I left bereft. Tue 3: To solve my headphone woes I finally took the plunge and bought a bluetooth set. I didn't buy the super-expensive Apple earbuds, I got something much more generic from Argos (and didn't pay a penny because I found a very old Nectar card and exhausted the balance on that). Wed 4: I'm now getting used to my new headphones. On the plus side - woo, no long cables getting in the way. On the minus side - years of faff making sure they're charged and connected, rather than just plugging something in. Thu 5: Two gladioli stalks about to burst into flower on my balcony, both of which (from previous experience) will topple and snap if left unsupported. Hopefully the forked twig I found in the Olympic Park will do the trick. [update: it did, and I had a glorious fortnight of sequential blooms] Fri 6: The four food kiosks down the spine of the Olympic Park now have separate branding - Taverna in the Park (specialising in Greek souvlaki wraps), Viva Vegan, Dessert Ice Cream Club and All Stars Kitchen (American style diner meals). I have yet to see all four open simultaneously. Sat 7: Sorting through boxes in the spare room I threw away an eight-inch pile of paperwork from Job 2, back when everything needed to be written and then photocopied because those were the days before digital sharing of information. Job 3 generated far less stashed trash. Sun 8: My local bus garage keeps sending out an open-topped sightseeing bus labelled 'Official Tour of Cambridge' on the back ('19 stops including Botanic Garden'). I found it on London Bridge.
Mon 9: Now that the Olympics are over the 'normal' TV schedule feels quite odd. I shall probably skip Breakfast TV for the next three years. Tue 10: Got a text from my mobile phone provider saying they'd "freshened up their SIM plans" so I had to choose a new contract, which I suspect is just a ruse to force me to sign something without free roaming included. Wed 11: Shopping update: My local big Tesco had no milk this morning, not even a rogue bottle of organic skimmed, just an entirely empty half-aisle where normally several trolleysworth would be stacked. I left bereft. Thu 12: I do not like the new Twitter font, chiefly because it's smaller than the previous one so harder to read. I miss the days when you could read more than one and a half tweets on a laptop screen without scrolling down. Fri 13: The cashier in Argos looked pretty frosty when I wanted to buy a kettle on the spot rather than online or using the machine, but she walked over to the till and professionally went through her script, and no I did not want to buy insurance thanks. Sat 14: I unexpectedly bumped into one of the bloggers in my blogroll during a Parkrun (they were, I wasn't). I have now randomly bumped into three blogrolled bloggers since lockdown started last year, on each occasion on the 'wrong' side of the Thames to where they live, and each time I have been inordinately surprised. Sun 15: The fuchsias outside my doctors' surgery are splendid at the moment.
Mon 16: A friend posted back something small I'd lent them, which ought to have been straight-forward. Unfortunately they packed it in a padded envelope along with two freebies, thereby exceeding 3cm in thickness so it didn't fit in my letterbox so I had to go and collect it. Also unfortunately they'd used a comedy name in the address so I needed to employ some top-level banter to persuade the postal clerk to hand it over. Also unfortunately I have no current need for the two freebies they sent, so a thin envelope would've done. Always think twice before lending something. Tue 17: Birdwatching update: After a four month gap I've finally seen a kingfisher again, and not in the Olympic Park but a bit further south. It was darting up the centre of the Lea with something in its beak, and it was magnificent, and also the closest to home I've ever seen one. [map of sightings] Wed 18: My favourite Radio 4 documentary series this month has been The Ghost Kingdoms of England in which Ian Hislop explores the Anglo-Saxon history and modern legacies of East Anglia, Northumbria, Mercia and Wessex. All still available. Thu 19: Animals I spotted on today's walk - a squirrel on a hopscotch court, a rat emerging from a fountain and two Shetland ponies on a pedestrian crossing. Fri 20: My brother and sister-in-law sent me a pack of eight chocolatey treats for Christmas, so I've been opening one a month and eating one piece per day. June's strawberry Quality Streets lasted longest, whereas last month's Toblerone barely managed 10 days. This month I unwrapped the final Chocolate Orange and today I guzzled the last segment. Roll on next Christmas. Sat 21: In my change today I got a 'Diversity Built Britain' 50p, which I wasn't aware was a thing. I've stashed it alongside my Brexit 50p (less 50/50, more 52/48).
Sun 22: Dave Gahan's younger brother messaged me on Twitter to say I'd blogged the wrong house when I went to Basildon in search of Depeche Mode's childhood homes. "We were never in number 54, we were in number 56". Thankfully I had a photo of the semi nextdoor so I've updated the post. Sorry Phil. Mon 23: Confirming that things are finally getting back to normal, the signs around the Olympic Park saying "Next event 15th March" have finally been updated (after 17 months) to say "Next event 23rd August". Tue 24: St Swithin's Day was dry this year (it occurred at the start of summer's peak week), but 40 days later my annual folklore check confirms that only 20 of the subsequent days were dry, so dead 9th century bishops know nothing. Wed 25: I found another £10 note lying on the ground! Last time I mentioned I'd found one you strongly recommended taking it, but I found this one beside the cemetery gates during a funeral so again I left it. Thu 26: I happened to be walking round Royal Wharf while some contractors were replacing all the private parking regulation signs, and by comparing before and after I was able to work out that all the parking fees had suddenly gone up by 30-40%, but I bet nobody living there's noticed. Fri 27: The All Points East festival is taking place in Victoria Park, and even though it's three-quarters of a mile away the bassline and sometimes the vocals are broadly audible (but not enough to work out who's actually performing). Sat 28: I managed to finish the bank holiday special themed jigsaw crossword on day of publication, so am now sad they no longer do 'prize' crosswords.
Sun 29: If you're getting your groceries delivered by Weezy in the Shadwell area, it's all coming out of a dingy unmarked arch containing a few numbered shelves, some refrigerated units, a stack of spare bikes, a whiteboard and three women coordinating everything off laptops at a side table. Mon 30: In personalised-numberplate-spotting news, today I spotted 'X16' on a black Merc haring down the A12 which means I've finally finished spotting all 420 opening combinations from A1 to Y20. I've only had X16 left to spot since mid-July, because the end of the challenge is a lot lot slower than the beginning. I started on 1st March so it's taken almost exactly six months to complete, during which time I've walked over 1800 miles, but that's infrequent random processes for you. Tue 31: Having waited 182 days to see my first X16, today I saw another one in the Olympic Park. This is why numberplate-spotting games can be so incredibly frustrating. Now all I have to do is spot a 71 reg tomorrow...
